Open enrollment for Texas health insurance is closed.

How can I buy an individual health insurance policy?

Well you missed it. The government has now limited the open enrollment season for Texas health insurance policies from November 1st to December 15th, 2017, but you are not without options. Let’s take a look at several choices and see if we still can’t get you insured on a suitable health insurance, Texas style.

Option 1: You may be able to use a special enrollment provision to purchase your Texas health insurance plan for 2018. These include moving to a new address, giving birth, adopting a child, getting married or even divorced. We’ve even used a recent release from prison, but that’s a stretch. If any of these apply to you, you have 60 days from the date of the event in order to enroll in your plan.

Option 2: A temporary or short term medical plan may be the answer. As of the writing of this article, a short term medical plan in Texas can only be written for 3 months at a time, but that may soon change. Trump recently signed an executive order to extend them out for up to 12 months, but that has not yet taken effect. These plans are not compliant with the ACA law and that basically means they don’t pay for pre-existing conditions, maternity, mental health, substance abuse treatment or preventive care. If you don’t need any of that, these temporary medical plans are an excellent option. Also, with the new tax law changes, there is no individual mandate for 2018 and that means if you buy a temporary Texas health insurance policy, then you will not be fined by the IRS as you would have in years past.

Option 3: The third and currently most preferable option would be a Texas small business health insurance plan that can give you access to a PPO like everyone wants. These small group plans are typically priced so that a group HMO would be about 25-40% less than comparable coverage in the Texas individual health insurance market. A group PPO option would be about the same cost as an individual HMO health insurance policy. Granted, your company must be properly set up in order to form a Texas group health insurance policy, but we can guide you through the requirements.

Option 4: Go without Texas health insurance altogether. This is a bad option and if you disagree, then it would be difficult to convince you otherwise. Normally, I would say just think about someone you know who had a heart attack, major car wreck or even cancer recently. What would their expenses be if they were uninsured? That should be enough, but every year I have a handful of people who choose this option and take the risk. I wish you the best of luck.

As you can see, there are plenty of suitable options even if you missed open enrollment this year. From a Texas health insurance policy for individuals or families to a small business health insurance plan to a temporary or short term medical policies, Selected Benefits has you covered. Just reach out to us at 866.270.6209 and we’ll get started on your personalized coverage for 2018.